In the current information age, information technology (IT) tools are extensively used in enterprises and other organizations in order to facilitate processing of documents and data. IT administrators typically have the responsibilities of monitoring and managing IT assets (such as computers, printers, scanners, and other network-connected, or standalone devices). For example, a multi-function device (MFD), which can provide a large number of functions (such as scanning, printing, copying, email, web and/or file browsing, and so forth) is commonly found in the typical IT environment today.
IT management tools (such as application software) are available to IT administrators to assist the administrators with performing their duties. Such tools commonly include an alert notification feature wherein a notification is transmitted to an administrator to notify the administrator of any of various predetermined dangerous or potentially dangerous conditions within the IT environment the administrator oversees. For example, when a problem or alert condition occurs at a multi-function device, an alert notification may be generated and transmitted to the administrator to inform the administrator of the problem or condition.
There is a drawback, however, in that a large number of alert notifications may be transmitted to the IT administrator. This may be the case if, for example, a number of alert conditions occur within a short period of time. Further, alert notifications may be transmitted to the IT administrator as a result of minor problems at the multi-function device, even though such minor problems may be resolved in a short time and/or without the aid of the administrator (e.g., when a user clears a paper jam). As a result, the IT administrator may become overwhelmed with a large number of alert notifications, and the ability of the administrator to efficiently manage the IT environment is affected.
There exists a need for improvements to alert generation within an IT system.